Jean-François Cail

Paris townhouse of Jean-François Cail, today Mairie du 8ieme arrondissement. Jean-François Cail (8 February 1804 – 22 May 1871) was a French entrepreneur and industrialist who was a key figure in French industrialization.

Life

Childhood Jean-François Cail was born the third of eight children on 8 February 1804. He was the son of Charles Cail (1777–1854), a wheelwright, and his wife, Marie Pinpin (1777–1839). The family had a small cottage in Chef-Boutonne, in Deux-Sèvres (16).

Partnership with Charles Derosne Jean-François Cail left home in 1816 to start an apprenticeship as a boilermaker. He ended up in the company of Charles Derosne, a manufacturing chemist involved in creating distillation equipment. Getting on well they founded the company Derosne & Cail in 1826. The company specialised in making alcohol and confectionery from sugar beet, and building machines to sell for others to follow the process. This included one of the world's first machines to make children's confectionery.

In 1844 the company planned to expand into the manufacture of steam locomotives and in 1845 supplied seven locomotives to Chemin de Fer de Nord, followed by two locomotives and wagons for Chemin de Fer de Sceaux in 1846.